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Nilsson : the life of a singer-songwriter

"He won Grammy awards, wrote and recorded hit songs, and yet no figure in popular music is as much of a paradox, or as underrated, as Harry Nilsson. In this first ever full-length biography, Alyn Shipton traces Nilsson's life from his Brooklyn childhood to his Los Angeles adolescence and his gradual emergence as a uniquely talented singer-songwriter. With interviews from friends, family, and associates, and material drawn from an unfinished autobiography, Shipton probes beneath the enigma to discover the real Harry Nilsson. Nilsson shunned live performance--his venue was the recording studio. He was a gifted composer of songs for a wide variety of performers, including the Ronettes, the Yardbirds, and the Monkees, yet Nilsson's own biggest hits were almost all written by other songwriters. He won two Grammy awards, had two top ten singles, numerous album successes, and wrote a number of songs that still sound remarkably fresh and original today. Near the end of his life, Nilsson's career was marked by voice-damaging substance abuse and the infamous deaths of both Keith Moon and Mama Cass in his London flat. Alyn Shipton's biography offers readers an intimate portrait of a man who has seemed both famous and unknowable--until now."--Publisher description.Read more...

1941 --
Good old desk --
Mr. Richland's favorite song --
Open your window --
Gotta get up --
It had to be you --
Don't forget me --
Turn out the light --
Perfect day --
It's so easy --
Lay down your arms --
Epilogue.

Responsibility:

Alyn Shipton.

Abstract:

In this first ever full-length biography of Harry Nilsson, author Alyn Shipton traces the musician's life from his Brooklyn childhood to his Los Angeles adolescence, and charts his gradual move into the spotlight as a talented songwriter.Read more...

Reviews

Editorial reviews

Publisher Synopsis

He was once described by his producer Richard Perry as the finest white male singer on the planet. Drawing on exclusive access to Nilsson's papers, Alyn Shipton's biography offers readers an intimate portrait of a man who has seemed both famous and unknowable-until now. * Goodreads * [Shipton] gives us the definitive take on an American original * Jeremy Shatan, An Earful * [This] detailed biography doesn't miss a single fact from the birth of Harry Nilsson in 1941 to his death, aged 52 ... Shipton chronicles the fascinating and equally heart-breaking life of this maverick musician. It's all here, warts and all ... [It] catches the very essence of Nilsson * Jon 'Mojo' Mills, Shindig * Shipton, a U.K. academic, balances Nilsson's tragic story with exacting analysis of his talents and similarly detailed accounts of bacchanalian exploits with ex-Beatles and other bons vivants. * Barry Walters, Rolling Stone * Bravo to Shipton for not only giving us the first Nilsson biography but, really, the only one we ever may need. * PopMatters * Despite the sadness at the heart of Shipton's biography, it rarely feels like a lament... Impressive and meticulously researched. * The Lady *Read more...